Wide package and method of manufacturing same



E. ERB 3,404,772

WIDE PACKAGE AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SAME Oct. 8, 1968 4 Shets-Sheet1 Filed Nov. 28. 1966 INVENT OR E RNS T E R8 ATTORNEY3 ocps, 1968 E- ERBWIDE PACKAGE AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SAME Filed NOV. 28, 1966 Fig. 42

A 9 mmnmm.mmlli M iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiifiiiiiiiiii 4 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR- ERNST ERB BY *M ATTORNEYS Oct. 8, 1968 E. ERB 3,404,772

WIDE PACKAGE AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SAME Filed Nov. 28, 1966 4Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENT OR ERNST E R8 ATTORNEY 5 Oct. 8, 1968 I E. ERB3,404,772

WIDE PACKAGE AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SAME Filed Nov. 28, 1966 4Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR ERNST ERB ATTORNEYS United States Patent3,404,772 WIDE PACKAGE AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SAME Ernst Erb,Basel, Switzerland, assignor to Erba Maschinenbau A.G., Basel,Switzerland, a Swiss corporation Filed Nov. 28, 1966, Ser. No. 597,408

Claims priority, application Switzerland, Dec. 1, 1965, 16,578/65; Mar.7, 1966, 3,239/66; June 27, 1966, 9,355/66 6 Claims. (Cl. 206-64)ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A process for developing and a thread packagehav n built up continuously staggered cross wound layers wlth narrowpitch lacing securing the layers. A multiplicity of laces are arrangedon the periphery of the package by a longitudinally stable system ofsub-division. The process for-developing consists of arranging a crosswinding path and continuously shifting the resultant layer formation toone side so that a conicity in the direction of shift develops and thencontinuing this point in cross wound fashion. Then the wide packagelayer is sub-divided over its entire width and also several times overits peripheral extent with divider elements which are attached to alongitudinally stable element over the full width of the package.

Conventional hanks are produced on winding machines, being so wound anddivided into a greater or lesser number of skeins that in order to beunreeled from rotatably mounted reels they have to be taken offradially. That is to say, they must be drawn off in a tangentialfashion, the reel being caused to rotate by the tension in the unwindingthread. This is the reason why, especially in the case of thinner andtherefore weaker yarns, the hank weight has to be limited sinceotherwise the thread would break; even if the reel were started up verycarefully and slowly, due to its small breaking strain the thread wouldbe very liable to rupture if it had to set a large mass rotating. Forthis reason, the hank weight is limited by the breaking strength of thethread.

Despite this, efforts have been made in a variety of directions towardsincreasing the hank weight. A certain amount of success has beenachieved in this direction, in that reeling machines have been equippedwith extremely sensitive start-up and braking arrangements. This hasbeen done on the one hand to get away with fewer tie points and longeroperating times, and on the other to reduce the number of manipulations.Again, in order to be able ,to work with larger hank weights, the numberof takeoff reels has been increased so that lower velocities can beused.

With artifices of this kind, it has been possible to obtain higher hankweights, especially in the case of stronger yarn such as knitting yarns.In producing twisted yarns, it has been possible to increase the takeoffweight per spindle to such an extent that reel weights of two and morekilograms are obtained. For purposes of dyeing and carrying out otherfinishing processes on the hank, these reels have to be split up intoseveral smaller hanks again, and this means that the large thread lengthobtained by the aforesaid artifices is broken down into severalsubsidiary lengths again, with consequent loss in quality.

The subject of the present invention is a large package which is woundin a novel way and can have weights amounting to several kilograms for asingle length of thread. The most important feature of this package,however, is that it does not have to be rotated in order to be unwound,it being possible instead for the thread to be drawn off at high speedin an axial direction from. the end of the stationary package.

Patented Oct. 8, 1968 The procedure adopted for producing a wide packageof this kind is that first of all a conical start is wound and that fromthis conical portion onwards, the package is wound width-wise incriss-cross fashion on a continuously shifting conical path. Thisdevelops a constant cone as in an ordinary cop, except that here thecone is of large periphery and is wound in crisscross fashion. This conethen makes it possible to unwind the thread from the stationary,circularly expanded wide package in an axial fashion, winding beingcarried out from this cone and at high speed.

The start of the cone can be executed in a variety of ways. In theexample shown, it is done in the manner which is mechanically the mostsimple to produce. This will be explained in greater detail in thespecific description and in relation to the drawing. Also, the crossingratio must be adapted to the particular application and to the materialbeing wound, but this will not be dealt with in any detail here.

The most important feature where securing the crisscross layer for anykind of processing is concerned, is the tie-off arrangement made in thisprocess, tie-off being done at narrowly spaced intervals, over thewidth, and being done in multiple fashion around the periphery. In thiscontext, it is arranged that the dividing elements of a tieotf, be theysolid elements or loops of thread, are associated with a longitudinallystable member in order to ensure that the spacing between said elementsis maintained. This protects the winding layer against aberrations inthe thread crossing pattern during processing, in order to ensure thebest unwinding conditions subsequently. None of the tie-off arrangementsso far known satisfy the present purpose, namely that of allowing axialwith drawal of the thread.

This combination of the conically wound hank and the securing of theconical criss-cross winding by the longitudinally stabilised tie-0Emeans constitutes a considerable advance in terms of a saving in work,thanks to higher thread speed on unwinding, and in terms of improvedquality due to the substantially longer thread length obtained (i.e.substantially longer intervals between tie points).

Packages of similar appearance but of much smaller diameter are alreadyknown, of a kind which are axially unwound, for example the spinningcops produced in rayon spinning techniques. This kind of package,however, is not built up in conical layers, so that it is applicableexclusively to absolutely smooth continuously spun threads. In the caseof yarns which are spun from fibres, where the projecting fibres inneighbouring threads can unite with one another during dyeing andwashing andfinay even matt, this kind of package cannot be used at a Onthe basis of the attached drawings, in thefollowing an example of theprocess of forming and tying off the package will be explained ingreater detail.

FIGURE 1 shows a schematic illustration through a layer of the package,illustrating the development of the cone;

FIGURES 2a-2b show an example of how longitudinally stable tie-off canbe effected using a rigid divider;

FIGURE 3 is a variant form, showing a semi-rigid divider;

FIGURE 4 is a radial section through the package layer with'the needlespushed through the layer;

FIGURE 5 is an axial section through the package layer in the plane ofthe needles;

FIGURE 6 is a radial section showing the needles drawn back through thepackage layer and showing the process of roller spot-welding;

FIGURE 7 is an axial section through the package layer 3 with the latterdivided by threads in the form of tie-oil loops;

FIGURE 8 is a radial section through the package layer, showing clampingsections;

FIGURE 9 is an interrupted longitudinal section through a wide packageof the kind proposed in accordance with the invention; and

FIGURE 10 is a section on the line X-X of FIG- URE 9. I

. In FIGURE 1, it is schematically illustrated how the conical layer isformed. The path of the criss-cross arrangement runs between A and B.,This distance must be adapted to the nature of the thread material, andto the layer thickness. To form a cone, this path is continuouslydisplaced towards the right in accordance with the yarn thickness. Eachfull layer of thread is illustrated schematically in FIGURE 1 by a lineof corresponding length. Each 'further length then runs down towards theright over the preceding layers. At the layer running from A to B, thecone is about half full, and at the layer running from A" to B" the coneis completed, and from that point remains unmodified with the subsequentwinding on of further layers. At this taper, the package is thendeveloped width-wise up to the last layer Y-Z and the Width is, in fact,arbitrarily determinable.

The formation of the package cone is no doubt similar to thatencountered at the start of a cop of the kind produced on a spinning ortwisting machine; however the mode of winding cannot be compared withthat used in the cop, since the latter is parallel-wound straight onto asleeve, whereas the wide package of the invention is criss-cross wound.In this cross-wound state, and with its longitudinally stable tie-offarrangements, this winding must subsequently be self-supporting, i.e. becapable of maintaining its form alone, without any core piece ormandrel.

A package layer of such large diameter would not stand up to any kind ofprocessing it no provision were made in the course of its constructionfor the inclusion of a longitudinally stable narrow-pitch system ofsub-division. The term pitch designates the distance between thedifferent laces. Such division should mean the provision, width-wide, ofat least three divider elements 3 per crossing path (see FIGURE 2), andshould be repeated a plurality of times around the periphery. Thedivider elements can be made of stable material such as wire of highgrade steel or plastic, or may also take the form of cords or threads.The divider elements 3, as FIGURES 2a and 2b indicate, have asubstantially U-shaped cross-section and the individual elements 3 are,in fact, linked I together through linking elements 3a, forming acohesive tie-off arrangement.

The most important feature of this tie-ofi arrangement is that thedivider elements are linked together to form a longitudinally stablestructure. In FIGURES 2a-2b, a rigid divider element 3, 4 is illustratedin which the elements 3 of high grade steel wire are in the form ofcohesive wire hoops. These hoops 3 are spot-welded to rigid channelsections 4. The entire arrangement 3, 4 can be inserted with its hoopsfrom the outside through the package layer in the direction of thearrows, Whilst the package is still on the fingers of the winder.

By introducing a more or less pencil-shaped closure element 5 throughthe aligned ends of the dividers 3 inside the cavity surrounded by thepackage layer, the elements 3 are prevented from falling out. In thisexample, as FIG- URES 201 and 2b indicate, the closure element consistsof a guide piece 5a which carries a flexible high grade steel wire 51).The closure element could equally well be some other device, however,such as a cord.

In FIGURE 3, a ditferent embodiment of a divider element, having aflexible backing 6 of synthetic material such as polypropylene, isshown. Here, the same wire hoops 3 are used, but this time they areformed in situ in a plastic injection moulding. Numerous embodiments ofsuch rigid or flexible divider elements can be provided. These areexclusively for use on non-automatic winding machines, however. Asmentioned in the introduction, in the case of modern automatic machinesthe divider elements are formed by threads or cords, using specialneedles, being attached via the form loops to longitudinally stableelements and thus maintained at the proper spacings.

FIGURES 4 to 7 schematically indicate an example of how a tie-ofiarrangement of this kind can be produced. The procedure here is thatover the complete finger length of the winding machine, needles 8 withspecial hooks and butts are provided (being located in a needle bed likethat of a flat-bed knitting machine, although this is not shown), and bymeans of a needle cam (not shown) the needles are actuated through theirbutts and forced thus from the outside through the package layer 2 sothat their hooked heads 8 project in a straight line into the internalcavity. Through these special hooks, a tie-off thread 7 coming from areel is then passed, by means of a special leader element 9, and this isthen attached to a clamping device (not shown) at the end of the row ofneedles. Then, from this end, the cam is moved back in order to draw oneneedle after the other back through the package layer, as shown inFIGURE 7 so that each needle draws a loop of thread 712 (FIGURE 7)around the part of the package layer situated between it and itsneighbours. In this way, each needle forms a loop 7b around the packagelayer, and these loops are then commonly attached to flexible butlongitudinally stable elements 16. These longitudinally stable elementsprevent the package layer from distorting in the manner which wouldoccur with any conventional kind of tie-off arrangement.

In the example of FIGURES 6 and 7, the loops are held in place betweenspecial upper and lower strips 16 of synthetic material which areprogressively spotwelded together, in order to achieve a longitudinallystable connection. The roller spot-welding mechanism consists of awelding roller 17 and a mating roller 18 (FIGURE 6).

The entire welding device and the supply reels carrying the tapes 16,are guided on a 'slide along the row of needles or loops, and specialhead guides in slot form ensure that the two tapes at either side of theloops are in exact alignment with one another. The welding roller isprovided at specific intervals around its periphery with electricallyheatable pipe 17a, which, by a combination of pressure and heat, producethe welds between the tapes. These weld points are at such intervalsfrom one another that within each loop at least one weld is bound tooccur. In order to ensure that this requirement is in fact met, theloops are previously spread out by a spreader plate 15 provided withteeth 15a. The section of the welding tapes is so chosen that the tapescan be easily torn apart, rupturing the weld points, without themselvessuffering any damage. In this way, when the package has been set up forunwinding, these more or less stifii tapes can easily be ripped apart.The tie-oil thread 7 can then be pulled out of the package in one piecefrom one end. The welding together of the two tapes can equally well beeffected using the dielectric principle.

The tapes could be connected together by sticking. Again, instead of thetapes 16, clips 19 of a suitable synthetic material could be employed,as FIGURE 9 shows. In this case, the loops 7b are picked up on teeth atthe precise proper intervals, and clamped in place by means of laterallydisposed beads.

In order that the tie-otf thread can be looped and picked up on thestabilising element at the ends of the package too (and in order,equally, that it can be removed in the same way), on the abutment strip12 (FIGURES 5 and 7) between the ends of the package, separating wedges13 associated with a cutter device 14 are provided. The wedge 13 isarranged so that when the strip 12 is urged in the direction of thearrow (FIGURE 5) first of all the bank ends are parted from one anotherto such an extent that the two end needles pass through freely whenoffered up. In this way, they each draw between package layer and cutterdevice similar loops 7b (FIGURE 7), the threads passing around thecutter device. Once all the loops 7b are on the longitudinally stableelements, the tie-01f thread 7 passing along the full width of thewinder machine is cut at the cutter devices so that the hanks are readyfor separate removal. Using special elements, the start and end threadsof each package are also fastened to the stabilising elements. Thesestabilising elements holding the ends are distinguished from the otherstabilising elements of the package by a special colour coding. In thisway, when the time for unwinding the package arrives, the start and endthreads can be found straight away.

FIGURES 9 and 10 show the finished wide package on the fingers 1 of awinding machine, and in this example the rigid elements 3, 4 and 5illustrated in FIGURES 2a and 2b, have been used for tie-off purposes.The wide package is here still in the tensioned state, therefore. Heretoo, as in the known winding machines, several tied packages may bearranged adjacent to one another. The finished packages 2 shown inFIGURE 9, are detached by radial retraction of the fingers 1, andremoved from said fingers. As already mentioned, thanks to thenarrow-pitch winding and attachment of the longitudinally stableelements, the result is achieved that the package remains stablethroughout all process stages, the package layer not shifting ordeforming, so that after processing the thread can be drawn oflf fromthe cone end in the axial direction, without any trouble at all.

I claim:

1. A thread package comprising built up continuously staggeredcross-wound layers, narrow-pitch lacing securing said layers, and amultiplicity of laces arranged on the periphery of said package by alongitudinally stable system of sub-division.

2. Process for developing a wide thread package comprising arranging across-winding path and continuously shifting the resultant layerformation to one side so that a conicity in the direction of shiftdevelops, then continuing the layer formation beyond this point incross-wound fashion, and then sub-dividing the arbitrarily wide packagelayer thus formed over its entire width and also several times over itsperipheral extent with divider elements which are attached to alongitudinally stable element over the full width of the package.

3. Process as claimed in claim 2 wherein said divider elements areformed directly on the package layer by threads, forcing a row ofneedles equipped with special hooks through the package layer from theoutside into the internal cavity, passing atie-off thread through saidhooks, pulling said thread through the package layer in the form ofloops by the progressive withdrawal of said needles and then attachingsaid loops to said longitudinally stable elements.

4. Process as claimed in claim 3 wherein first of all, in each casebetween the ends of the package layers, the threads of the package areparted from one another using a wedge so that the end needles loop thetie-ofl thread directly around a cutter device and thus form 'betweenthe latter and the package layer separate loops, cutting the tieoft'thread at this point since the process of division has ended, and thenattaching the ends of the tie-off thread in each package in loop form tosaid longitudinally stable element.

5. Process as claimed in claim 4 wherein the start and end of thepackage thread are attached in loop form to said stabilizing element andsaid element is marked with a special color coding.

6. Process as claimed in claim 4, wherein the loops at both start andend of the thread package are attached between two tapes of syntheticmaterial by spot-welding.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 460,665 10/1891 Simon 2s 21903,642 11/1908 Wardwell 242- 2,268,727 1/1942 Taylor et a1. 28-21MARTHA L. RICE, Primary Examiner.

